Chain Gang of Love

Thankfully, the same simple swagger characterises their excellent follow-up. Similar limits are in evidence here, all songs being in B-Flat Major, but Sune Rose Wagner and Sharin Foo now employ different tempos and moods. Both "Remember" and "Love Can Destroy Everything" are slow romances, recalling the heavy melodrama of the Shangri-Las, while "The Truth about Johnny" is a warped beat pop. Elsewhere there's the rapid, funky "Let's Rave On" and the improbably dirty riff of "Little Animal", a sex song with a gloriously apocalyptic twist.

Naturally, with the Raveonettes aiming to create timeless pop, love and sex are much in evidence, from the S&M-marked "The Love Gang" through to thwarted affections and emotional disruption of single "That Great Love Sound". At 33 minutes, Chain Gang of Love is half as long again as its predecessor, but anyone with a feel for 60s' pop and melodic garage will be overjoyed at that. --Dominic Wills